Review: Assassins Creed III

The Assassins Creed series have always strove for perfection. Be it in it’s beautiful graphics, historically near perfect architecture, deep engaging storylines or it’s fighting and freerunning gameplay. All of these has made the series a must play and a bestseller. The last game Assassins Creed II: Revelations concluded the assassin Ezio’s arc which hit a very high note in the series. Does the new Assassins Creed III set the bar higher or does it let it’s predecessors down.

The storyline moves from the European and Middle East settings of the last few games to Colonial America, at the point in history where the country was at the cusp of the Revolution and Civil War. You play a half native american named Conner, a distant ancestor of the protagonist Desmond, which is the sci-fi aspect of Assassins Creed as a device called the Animus allows Desmond to explore his ancestors lives encoded in his DNA. That is the overarching plotline, the eternal struggle between the templars and Assassins.

Assassin Creed games have always been strong historically in the storytelling. Imbuing historical events and wrapping them around their titular characters, allows a high level of engagement. Thus, III follows Connor’s life from a kid to Assassin to freedom fighter spanning over two decades, while the America around him grows, where cities grow from shanties. With the backdrop of the civil war which, interestingly, you actually get to be a part of.

Another aspect of the Assassins Creed games is the central characters personalities that shape the game, and around that the excellent writing flows. Altair from the first game was righteous and quiet, in stark contrast to the charismatic, fun loving and memorable Ezio. Connor, is a bit of a hothead and may come across as annoying to some. Though, the writing that pushes his character along makes up a bit with it’s themes of good and evil, but something about this doesn't sit right, making Connor and everything else feel one dimensional. Though on the bright side the Desmond sequences in present day are a lot more fun.

The game mechanics are the same and true to the Assassins Creed brand, Connor, much like Ezio and the other assassins before him has the ability to freerun and like an assassin, the ability to strike from the shadows. You get to explore Boston and New York in it’s early days. The system has been also adapted to wilderness scenes, as Connor can jump from tree to tree stalking his prey, jumping from branch to branch with ease. The world as it opens up gradually is truly massive, with lots of side quests and minigames to engage in of the main quest.

Assassins Creed III is very combat heavy, which is a good thing. Of course as an assassin you can do assassinations, by trailing targets and killing them stealthily. Though there’s lots of normal combat, against multiple opponents. The battle system is a simple block parry system, which works on timing and rhythm, and once mastered can dispatch enemies in quick and brutal kills, depicted by some really cool animations. You have a lot of weapons at your disposal, from attacking from afar with bows and arrows to up close and personal tomahawks and lots more. For assassinations there's the signature hidden blade.

There’s so much stuff to do in Assassin's Creed III, that it’s not possible to list all in our quickreviews. However, one minigame you have to try is the Naval Warfare in the form of Privateer missions. You command Connors warship the Aquila, where you have to navigate the high seas keeping in mind the elements as you dispatch off enemy ships with your cannons. A fantastic diversion from the main quest.

The graphics are mind blowing as expected from each release of the Assassins Creed franchise. A brand new engine was written for this game called Anvil Next, capable of handling some huge scenarios and impressive crowds for you to blend in as an assassin. Not only that, the game throws huge battleground teeming with soldiers like the historical Battle of Bunker Hill pictured above. It even runs magnificently on all next gen consoles. Though, a game this big is not without major glitches, so if you buy the game, make sure you update.

This review is mostly on the single player aspects of the game. However, the game does has a multiplayer counterpart much like Assassins Creed II Brotherhood and Revelations. Where you and upto 4 friends can co-op together to take down targets in the wolfpack mode. There’s a domination mode where teams work to take over territory from other teams. The assassination moves lends itself well to the multiplayer. A good addon once you finish the game.

Assassins Creed III may not be as good as the previous games in the franchise, but its still an Assassins Creed game through and through. Those who have played all the previous games and are fans of the universe, may just find that this is more of the same. For those new to the series, then this is a great starting point. Highly recommended. Just make sure you patch it.